Surprise! EU Says E-Cigarettes Should be Taxed like Tobacco

In a very predictable move, EU bureaucrats have re-actively proposed a way to achieve tax 'parity' between conventional tobacco and e-cigarettes, most likely on e-liquids. The increased levy they propose would mean adding something like 57% value-added tax to products. The assumption of harm being equivalent is most likely behind the sudden appearance of these proposals.

Reactionary moves to the first bit of irrelevant research (to most products on the market) like this are not how public policy should be conducted. The research that has got most press has strengthened the evidence that normal e-cigarettes are indeed vastly safer than tobacco burning, and any such move would discourage existing users from switching. This will undoubtedly cost lives and such a high rate of duty cannot be scientifically justified on health grounds.

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